Possible Duplicates:
How to explain programming to a non-programmer?
Getting non-programmers to understand the development process

I was asked a question today that made me think. Here's a middle age person who apparently knows nothing about computers besides this specific application they use (I actually suggested to use Calculator, rather than hunt around the whole office for a hand-held one which had mysteriously vanished, and the fact that the computer could be used for such tasks was apparently news), asking me to explain what programming is about. In general.

I tried, but am not sure I managed very well. But it got me thinking. What would be a good way to describe programming, or more generally speaking systems development, to a person like that? How have you responded being put in a similar situation?